In a one-woman show that debuts in London next year, succession star Sarah Snook will play 26 different characters.
A new version of The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde's sole book, will star the actress.
Since her debut in The Master Builder with Ralph Fiennes in 2016, Snook will be making her first appearance on a stage in London.
The prospect of taking on so many different roles, according to Snook, is "an exhilarating challenge I can't wait to get into.".
The Picture of Dorian Gray will debut at the Theatre Royal Haymarket on January 23, 2024, and run there for almost a month.
Although a different actress played the title role there, Snook's native Australia has already seen success with the new stage adaptation of Wilde's 1890 novel.
Snook said of the show's move to London: "I'm so excited by the prospect of returning to the stage, let alone a stage in the West End.
It's exciting to bring a show to an international audience in a theater Oscar Wilde would probably have frequented, but it takes a high caliber of theatrical experience to be deserving of the endeavor. ".
"I'm honored to be joining the team that created The Picture of Dorian Gray," she continued. I can't wait to take on the thrilling challenge of being asked to play these many different roles. ".
The actress Eryn Jean Norvill, who played Snook's opposite in the Australian production, "dazzled," according to The Guardian, which gave it five stars.
According to theatre critic Cassie Tongue, "[the show] is ambitious, exuberant and whip-smart; it is an embrace of theater's past, present, and future.".
The artistic director of Sydney Theatre Company, Kip Williams, also served as the production's director and was responsible for the adaptation and West End transfer.
The critically acclaimed fourth and final season of the Emmy-winning drama Succession, in which Snook starred, aired earlier this year.
She portrayed Shiv Roy in the television show, one of four kids vying for ownership of their father Logan Roy's global media and entertainment business.
The Picture of Dorian Gray will use a variety of on-stage cameras and video screens, much like its sister production in Australia, to help bring the characters to life.
In its review of the Australian production, Time Out noted that the production's "powerful use of Snapchat filters and other selfie-style shots draw heavy parallels to the impossible beauty standards of social media influencers and how this curated identity can be the painted rust concealing psychological trauma beneath.".
The majority of the characters in the production will be played live by Snook each night, with the cameras being used more as a technique to enhance her performance. This is true even though cameras and screens are present.
The Picture of Dorian Gray tells the tale of a young man who sells his soul in exchange for youth and beauty that last a lifetime while addressing morality, narcissism, and excess themes.
The main character of the show strikes a deal to keep his body in perfect youth while a recently painted portrait of him, which represents his soul, ages and becomes more unattractive.
Gray starts committing a series of heinous crimes, but as he does so, the horrifying portrait he has hanging in his home gets worse and worse, serving as a constant reminder of the toll each evil deed takes on his soul.
Ultimately, Gray's descent into sin and hedonism causes him to wonder where the true source of beauty in life actually lies.
It will be exciting to recreate this tale of morality, innocence, narcissism, and consequence for a brand-new audience, Snook said in reference to the play's London production. ".
Similar to how Prima Facie was staged in Sydney before moving to the West End, where it won British star Jodie Comer an Olivier and a Tony Award, this production was transferred from Australia to London.
